is in abeyance and all Intellection and even , to dare the word , the very self : caught away , filled with God , he has in perfect stillness attained isolation ; all the being calmed , he turns neither to this side nor to that , not even inwards towards himself ; utterly resting he has become very rest . ( Enneads , VI . 9.11 ) 10
The Medieval Christian mystic , Meister Eckhart , also emphasises the experience of unity , purity of being , and lack of phenomenological content :
But when all images are removed from the soul and she perceives the single Oneness , the pure being of the soul , resting in herself , receives the pure , formless being of divine unity which is being beyond being . ( German Sermons Sermon 28 ) 11
The examples above , with the caveat that they are being read in English translation , all refer to unity , to the absence of multiplicity , to a type of consciousness which is not engaged in thought or sensory impressions , and to feelings of peace and being at rest . Mystical experience , like any experience , is subjective but Stace believes there are enough similarities within the reports of mystical experience to illustrate the presence of key features or characteristics . James takes a similar approach of identifying reoccurring features in reports of mystical experience , although his emphasis is more on what he terms the noetic quality of mystical experiences as well as their ineffability . 12 The universalist position is challenged , however , by hard constructivists who consider a common core to be impossible since all experiences are shaped by the particular context and linguistic framework of the experiencer . 13
21